Miami Marlins: Grading the Fish in Atlanta

Miguel Rojas +.030

Miguel Rojas batted seventh in the lineup on Friday, and grounded into a double play to end the second inning (-.054) in his first plate appearance of the series. He drew a one-out walk in the fifth (+.033), but was gunned down trying to steal second (-.055). He grounded out in the middle of a 1-2-3 seventh (-.012) in his last plate appearance of Miami’s 2-0 win.

On Saturday, Rojas batted second in the order. He hit a one-out single in the first inning (+.024), but was stranded by two strikeouts. He grounded out for the second out of the third (-.016), then he grounded out again to end the fifth (-.012). Rojas struck out for the second out of the eighth (-.004), with Miami trailing, 6-1.

Rojas was back in seventh in the order in the series finale on Sunday. He was hit by a pitch with two outs in the second inning (+.013), getting to first with whatever it takes. With nobody out and the bases loaded in the fourth, he delivered an RBI-single (+.069) to give Miami a 2-0 lead. He then scored on Lewis Brinson’s grand slam. With one out and one on in the fifth, he was again struck by a pitch (+.005). Later, with a runner on third and one out in the seventh, Rojas hit his sixth home run of the season (+.027). With one out in the ninth, he did it again. It was the first multi-home run game of his career.

Rojas came into this season with four career home runs, one for each of his four major league seasons. We knew he would be a regular contributor, but I don’t think anyone could have predicted this mid-career power surge. With seven this season already, he is projecting 25 round trippers.

Grade: B+